In a massive blow to the travel industry which was seeing some uplift from sales of winter sun holidays, the Canary Islands has been removed from the travel corridor list, with effect from 4am on 12 December. Transport secretary Grant Shapps made the announcement on 10 December following an increase in positive tests on the islands. Paul Charles of the PC Agency and the Quash Quarantine campaign described it as “utterly devastating news not only for consumers who booked Xmas breaks but also for travel firms who benefited from the sales uplift.”
Rory Boland, editor of Which?Travel magazine, warned that the decision would be the end of some travel firms. “Removing the Canary Islands this close to winter sun season is going to send some holiday companies bankrupt,” he tweeted. He added that it reinforced the advice not to travel unless you can afford to take 14 days to self-isolate. “It’s not the time to take a holiday,” he said.
Countries that are on the corridor list mostly have their own restrictions preventing visitors from entering. On 26 November 10 countries were added: Aruba, Timor-Leste, Solomon Islands, Samoa, Mongolia, Bhutan, Micronesia, Kiribati, Vanuatu and Tonga, while Estonia and Latvia were removed. However, Samoa, Mongolia, Bhutan, Micronesia, Kiribati, Vanuatu and Tonga currently do not allow entry to British visitors, and Timor-Leste and the Solomon Islands both require a 14-day quarantine on arrival. Travel to Aruba is not possible without transit through the United States or The Netherlands, both of which have bans on British travellers. Meanwhile the ban on visiting Denmark has been lifted, although it has not been added to the travel corridor list.
Africa got its first travel corridor on 19 November with the addition of Rwanda and Namibia to the list. Sri Lanka, Uruguay and Israel were also added, as were the Dutch Caribbean islands of Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba and the US Virgin Islands. The Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific were also added. They join Bahrain, Cambodia, Chile, Iceland, Laos, UAE, Qatar and Turks and Caicos, which were added a week ago. It’s important to note that while there is no longer a requirement to quarantine on arrival into the UK from these destinations, most have restrictions in place for passenger arrivals. For example, Sri Lanka is currently closed to all non-nationals.
Gibraltar and the Maldives are also on the travel corridor list. Greece was removed from the travel corridor list on 12 November. Anyone arriving from Greece (apart from Corfu, Crete, Rhodes, Zakynthos and Kos) after 4am on 14 November will have to self-isolate. Denmark has been removed from the travel corridor list, requiring people to self-isolate from Friday 13 November. It followed the removal of Germany and Sweden on 5 November; and Cyprus and Lithuania on 29 October.
This week the European Commission indicated that there will be no exemption for the UK from its Covid-19 restrictions meaning Britons will be barred from entering the EU when the UK leaves the union. Norway also indicated it will bar British tourists from 1 January. Click here to find out how this will affect holidays in 2021.
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This article was first published 6 July at 12pm. It was updated at 11.30am on 27 November.
UK TRAVEL CORRIDOR LIST UPDATE
Passengers arriving from these countries and territories into the UK DO NOT have to self-isolate. However, the majority of countries on the UK’s travel corridor list have their own specific entry restrictions and requirements, as outlined below. Always check the full travel advice on the Foreign Office website.
EUROPE
Canary Islands
Passengers have to provide contact information and any history of exposure to Covid-19 48 hours prior to travel. They also have to have a temperature check and visual health assessment.
Gibraltar
All arrivals must fill in a passenger locator form (after check-in at the airport).
Iceland
Passengers must take two Covid tests, one on arrival and another 5-6 days later, and self-isolate until the result of the second test, or self-isolate for 14 days. Visitors must also fill in a pre-registration form before departure. Will be added to the travel corridor list at 4am on 14 November.
NEWLY ADDED ON 26 NOVEMBER – WITH EFFECT FROM 4AM ON 28 NOVEMBER
Aruba
All arrivals must get approval to travel to Aruba through the Embarkation/Disembarkation card online before arrival. All arrivals must present a negative COVID-19 test result within 72 hours of departure for Aruba or on arrival in Aruba (the latter requires a mandatory 24 hour quarantine).
Timor-Leste
All arrivals must quarantine for 14 days either in a government facility or in own accommodation, subject to the approval of the Ministry of Health.
Solomon Islands
Incoming passengers must be approved for travel into Solomon Islands by the Solomon Islands government. They will need to show evidence of at least 2 negative tests prior to travelling (3 if travelling from the UK and other high risk countries).
Samoa
Only permanent residents and essential workers are permitted to enter Samoa at this time.
Mongolia
It is currently not possible for British nationals to enter Mongolia due to restrictions imposed by the Mongolian government except in limited circumstances.
Bhutan
Bhutan’s borders are currently closed to foreign nationals, including British citizens.
Micronesia
No passengers are allowed to disembark any air or sea vessel originating outside of Federated States of Micronesia.
Kiribati
Kiribati’s borders are currently closed to international travel.
Vanuatu
The borders are closed and it is not possible to travel to Vanuatu, unless you are a Vanuatu citizen or returning permanent resident.
Tonga
Tonga’s borders are closed to entry by all foreign nationals, except if authorisation is granted by the relevant Tongan government authority.
NEWLY ADDED ON 19 NOVEMBER – WITH EFFECT FROM 4AM ON 21 NOVEMBER
Rwanda
All arrivals must present a negative PCR test result taken within 120 hours of departure.
Namibia
Arrivals must present proof of a negative test taken within the previous 72 hours.
Sri Lanka
Entry to Sri Lanka is currently prohibited for all non-nationals and the government is not issuing visas to travel to the country
Uruguay
Visitors have to present a negative test result on arrival and quarantine for seven days. On the seventh day they must take a second test and continue to self-isolate until they get the results.
Bonaire/St Eustatius/Saba
British nationals can not visit Bonaire or Saba; UK visitors to St Eustatius have to quarantine for 14 days.
Israel
There is a ban on entry except for citizens or residents
WORLDWIDE
Bahrain
All arrivals into Bahrain are required to undergo and pay for the enhanced arrivals testing procedure for Covid-19 and need to self-quarantine until test results have been received. Will be added to the list at 4am on 14 November.
Cambodia
All foreigners arriving in Cambodia have to take a Covid-19 test on arrival (as well as requiring a Covid negative test before flying, taken no longer than 72 hours before the date of arrival). Foreign arrivals are also required to deposit US$2000 for the Covid-19 service charges at the airport upon arrival. The remainder is returned after deductions for a test on arrival and any other expenses (such as transport to a waiting centre). Will be added at 4am on 14 November.
Chile
No arrivals permitted except Chilean nationals and foreign nationals with valid residency visas for Chile. Transit through Chile is possible, as long as passengers remain airside throughout the journey.
Laos
No visas are being issued to people travelling from a country with cases of Covid-19, including the UK.
UAE
People travelling from the UK can undertake a PCR swab test on arrival at Dubai airport. If travelling to the rest of the UAE passengers must have proof of a negative result before travelling. Those transiting through the UAE to a country that requires a PCR test on arrival must obtain a negative PCR test before travelling.
Qatar
Transit passengers transferring through Hamad International airport will receive regular thermal screening and temperature checks.
Turks and Caicos
Passengers must provide evidence of a negative Covid test taken within five days prior to arrival.
For a full list of countries on the UK government’s travel corridor list check the Foreign Office website
